Posted on 06/07/2004 7:31:01 AM PDT by areafiftyone
NEW YORK, June 7 (Reuters) - A Pentagon report last year concluded President George W. Bush was not bound by laws prohibiting torture and U.S. agents who might torture prisoners at his direction could not be prosecuted by the Justice Department, The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday.
The findings were part of a classified report on interrogation methods prepared for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld by top civilian and uniformed military lawyers who also consulted with other agencies, the newspaper said.
The report was compiled after commanders at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, complained in late 2002 that they were not getting enough information from prisoners through conventional methods, according to the Journal.
The document outlined U.S. laws and international treaties forbidding torture, and why those restrictions might be overcome by considerations for national security or legal technicalities, the newspaper said.
The Journal said it reviewed a March 6, 2003, draft of the report. The draft argues that because nothing is more important than "obtaining intelligence vital to the protection of untold thousands of American citizens," normal strictures on torture might not apply, the newspaper said.
The report contended the president has the authority as commander in chief to approve almost any physical or psychological actions during interrogation, up to and including torture, the newspaper said.
It is not known if Bush has ever seen the report, the Journal said. The Bush administration has said it supports the Geneva Conventions and humane treatment for detainees.
According to the newspaper, a Pentagon official said some military lawyers objected to some of the proposed interrogation methods but that they ultimately signed on to the final report in April 2003, shortly after the war in Iraq began.
The newspaper said it had not seen the full final report, but that people familiar with it say there were few substantial changes in legal analysis between the draft and final versions.
Just like an episode from "24."
Since this is a draft, I would like to read the final document before I opine on the appropriateness of the report.
If that's the actual title of the article, I'd say the title itself is a hit piece, designed to subliminally connect the Presdient to the 'tortures' the presstitutes want you to believe are rampant.
THis article was written to give you the specific idea that the USA is torturing prisoners.
that's all - the rest of the article is BS just to reinforce the idea that "The USA is torturing Prisoners"
This is called propoganda - brainwashing - USA tortures prosioners.
now ... is that in your mind? the next story you hear that the USA torture Prisoners will subtely reinforce that in your mind....bit by bit by little bit - the method of the left wing radical agenda (ask gramsci)
The Geneva Conventions protect uniformed soldiers of an enemy with a defined command structure. These terrorists don’t fall into those categories.
Does anyone get the WSJ? I am waiting for my boss's WSJ to come in to check it out.
Exactly.
Non-uniformed enemy combatants are not entitled to Geneva Convention protections.
Cheap shot. Notice how they linked the torture to GW.
They didn't just say the president, or the US government, or agents of the Federal government, or the US military.
No, they had to say President George H. Bush.
Agenda driven maggots.
Agenda driven maggots = Reuters
The Geneva Conventions don't refer to TERRORISTS,they refer to uniformed military!!!In the word of Ed Norton"SHEEEEEEEEEEEEEESHHHHHH"!!!!!!!!
You are ABSOLUTELY CORRECT!!By the way,are there any openings at Abu Graib for"Torturers"?I could use some practice(not to mention gainful employment)!!
Sadly, the US did torture prisoners.
The issue should never been up for discussion. The good news is that this is a very busy news cycle so this story will be lost, as it should be.
PENTAGON REPORT SET FRAMEWORK FOR USE OF TORTURE
Security or Legal Factors Could Trump Restrictions, Memo to Rumsfeld Argued.
If anyone has a online subscripton please feel free to post the article.
The headline implies President Bush is somehow (between meetings and running the country) personally torturing prisoners. What scum.
This peacenik website is the only "news" source that uses this exact headline.
I cannot even find the first sentence available from any other media source.
Searching for Bush and "torture laws" I find the following headlines for this story:
US 'not bound by torture laws' (BBC)Pentagon finds Bush not bound by torture laws: report (ABC Online: Australia)
Lawyers said Bush not bound by torture laws - WSJ (Reuters AlertNet, UK - "Alerting humanitarians to emergencies")
Permissible pain and torture (The Statesman, India)
CIA using force on terrorism suspects (Sydney Morning Herald, Australia )
The following are from assorted US papers (and appeared multiple times): "Harsh CIA Methods Cited in Top Qaeda Interrogations"
"CIA interrogation rules for al-Qaida questioned">Ashcroft says abuse can be prosecuted (Omaha World Herald, NE)
Ashcroft Says US Can Prosecute Civilian Contractors for Prison ... (Washington Post, DC )
Shoving broomsticks and chem-lights up peoples' butts. Having prisoners jerk-off in each others' faces. Letting the dogs have a go at them. That may not qualify as torture in your book but it sure does in mine.
That constitutes torture by soldiers wearing the American uniform. It may not be policy but some of us did it all the same.
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